How people and community groups can help

Community Response Forum in each area coordinating local measures welcoming people from Ukraine

Community Response Forums have been established in every local authority, chaired by the Chief Executive, to coordinate the community-led response in the provision of assistance and support people fleeing the war in Ukraine as they are accommodated around the country. Through the efforts of local volunteers, community workers, public bodies and private sector contributions many recent arrivals are being supported with basic needs such as clothing, access to the internet, transport, English classes and information on how to access local services such childcare, healthcare and education.

The role of the Community Response Forum is to provide a co-ordination point for the community and voluntary response in their area. Building on structures and relationships which were highly effective during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Community Response Fora will enable all those involved to work together under the stewardship of the local authority. Supplementing the supports and services being provided by government agencies at a local level, the purpose will be to ensure effective communication and information sharing in the coordination of local community and voluntary actions in providing community supports to the new Ukrainian communities.

Contact points for each Local Authority are available below.

If you’d like to volunteer

If you would like to volunteer to help, please contact your local Volunteer Centre, or register on the national volunteering database (I-VOL).

You can find out more about how to register on the national volunteering database I-VOL, at https://www.volunteer.ie/volunteers/.

Each County has its own Volunteer Centre. You can find out more about volunteering opportunities in your area from your local Volunteer Centre: https://www.volunteer.ie/about-us/vcs/find-your-vc/.

If you would like to volunteer to help, please contact your local Volunteer Centre and they will assist in finding the volunteering option that best suits you.

The types of roles that may be needed include:

• welcoming in community – for example: showing people around town, shops, park; play dates with children
• welcome ambassador roles at ports, airports, directing people to the hubs set up by government
• assisting at (or organising) local community welcome events
• driving
• providing essential items
• cleaning/preparing housing
• translators
• befriending
• psycho-social supports
• support with conversational English (for example: through Failte Isteach or NALA)

Community groups should link in with their Local Authority and Local Development Company to co-ordinate with local efforts. A list of Local Development Companies is available at https://ildn.ie/directory/.

Organisations that are registered with the local Volunteer Centre can advertise volunteer roles through the Centre and also through the national database I-VOL.

You should contact your local Volunteer Centre to let them know the role is in response to the Ukraine crisis and they will prioritise promotion of this role.

If you are not registered with your local Volunteer Centre, you can register by contacting them directly. Once registered, you can advertise your roles on the I-VOL database.

If you are a community group in need of volunteers

Community groups may also be able to access volunteers and get supports from their local Volunteer Centre.

Contact your local Volunteer Centre and they will help identify and coordinate suitable volunteers for your organisation.

The Community Volunteers pilot programme provides a way for local communities to offer support to those in need. The programme is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and coordinated by Volunteer Ireland and the network of Volunteer Centres, with support from the Local Authority in each area.

Developed based on lessons learned about volunteering during COVID-19, it can support urgent needs that arise unexpectedly, like the community response to COVID-19, as well as support for local events and initiatives.

The programme is initially running in counties Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Louth, Meath, Wicklow, Kildare and Monaghan, with rollout in ten further counties due this year. Community Volunteers can be engaged through local Volunteer Centres.

The incredible generosity of Irish people and their strong solidarity with Ukraine is hugely welcome.

The most effective way to support humanitarian assistance in Ukraine and neighbouring countries is to donate cash to established Irish and international humanitarian organisations. Sending physical items is likely to add significant stress to local infrastructure systems already under immense pressure.

A list of Irish humanitarian organisations responding to this crisis can be found on the website of Dóchas, the umbrella organisation for Irish NGOs.

Appeal for unoccupied properties

Local Authorities have launched a new initiative appealing to those who have unoccupied properties to offer them as temporary homes for those fleeing war in Ukraine. This new government initiative, led by Local Authorities, will take and manage offers of unoccupied houses, apartments or holiday homes to house people and families fleeing war in Ukraine.

Under the new initiative, Local Authorities will take offers of houses, apartments or holiday homes for temporary accommodation, liaise with owners to assess suitability, and arrange for their use by people and families from Ukraine.

Local Authorities will continue to support property owners and people from Ukraine taking up the offers of accommodation during the arrangement.

Property owners who wish to offer a home should go to gov.ie/offerahome or make direct contact with the local authority in which their property is located.

Payment for those hosting people from Ukraine

People across Ireland have opened their homes to provide temporary accommodation to people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. In recognition of their generosity, the government is providing a monthly payment of €400 for each property which will increase to €800 from 1 December 2022.

More information on the Accommodation Recognition Payment.

The Open Community

If you are hosting people arriving from Ukraine, or want to help support new arrivals, The Open Community has a full toolkit of easily accessible and free resources designed to support you throughout your hosting experience. These include trauma-informed online training, regular online support sessions, a multilingual mobile app called ‘Swift Integration’, and access to free legal advice.

All the supports can be accessed on the Host Supports page of The Open Community Website. Please note that Open Community and its partners are only available to offer advice and guidance as required.

For any queries please contact info@theopencommunity.ie

All departments are extremely busy working with colleagues across Government to assist the humanitarian efforts regarding Ukraine. As this unprecedented situation unfolds, our primary focus remains on critical operational matters as the situation evolves.

We are working to secure accommodation from as many sources as possible and we thank you sincerely for your offer of support.